Avodah Zarah, Daf Kaf Bet, Part 1
Introduction
Today s sugya deals with cases of partnerships between Jews and non-Jews where the Jew takes the profit from what is permitted to him (for instance, the work done on Sunday) and the non-Jew takes the profit from the part that the Jew is not allowed to profit from (Shabbat).
הנהו מוריקאי דעובד כוכבים נקיט בשבתא וישראל בחד בשבתא. אתו לקמיה דרבא שרא להו.
Two saffron-growers, the non-Jew took charge of the field on Shabbat, and the Israelite took charge on Sunday. They came before Rava; and he permitted the partnership.
Rava allowed the Jew and the non-Jew to share ownership of the field. The non-Jew would work the field on Shabbat, and receive the full profits from that day, and the Jew on Sunday.
איתיביה רבינא לרבא ישראל ועובד כוכבים שקיבלו שדה בשותפות לא יאמר ישראל לעובד כוכבים טול חלקך בשבת ואני בחול ואם התנו מתחלה מותר ואם באו לחשבון אסור
Ravina raised a difficulty on Rava: If an Israelite and a non-Jew leased a field in partnership, the Israelite should not say subsequently to the non-Jew, Take your portion of the profit for the work on Shabbat, and I will take as mine for the week day. But if they made such a condition at the outset, it is permitted. But if they calculate the profit it is forbidden.
The baraita rules that if the field is already jointly owned by the Jew and the non-Jew, the Jew cannot let the non-Jew take the profits for the work done on Shabbat in return for the Jew taking the profit for work done on Sunday. They can only do this if they make the arrangement at the outset before they join into the partnership agreement. Evidently, Ravina thought that the saffron growers did not make their arrangement before Shabbat.
איכסיף לסוף איגלאי מלתא דהתנו מעיקרא הוו
Rava was embarrassed. Subsequently, it was revealed that the partners had indeed laid down that condition originally.
At first Rava is embarrassed that he allowed them to share the profits in this way. In the end, they learned that the partners had made the condition at the outset, and therefore the arrangement was permitted.
רב גביהה מבי כתיל אמר הנהו שתילי דערלה הוה עובד כוכבים אכיל שני דערלה וישראל שני דהתירא אתו לקמיה דרבא שרא להו
R. Gavihah of Be-Katil said: That was a case of orlah plants, the non-Jew ate the produce during the orlah years and the Israelite during [a corresponding number of] permitted years. They came before Rava who permitted it.
Rav Gavihah has a different version of the story. The partnership was not made to get around the issue of Shabbat, it was to get around the problem of orlah the prohibition of eating the fruit of a tree during its first three years of growth. Rava allowed this deal to exist. Rashi explains that this agreement is more acceptable with regard to orlah than it is with Shabbat.
והא אותביה רבינא לרבא.
לסיועי סייעיה והא אכסיף לא היו דברים מעולם
But did not Ravina raise a difficulty on Rava?
[No,] it was in order to support it.
Then why was Rava embarrassed?
That never occurred at all.
According to this version of the story, Ravina did not raise a difficulty on Rava from the first half of the baraita, he was supporting Rava from the second half. Indeed, there is really nothing controversial about this act at all (according to Rashi). And Rava was never embarrassed.
איבעיא להו סתמא מאי? ת"ש אם התנו מתחילה מותר הא סתמא אסור
אימא סיפא אם באו לחשבון אסור הא סתמא מותר
אלא מהא ליכא למשמע מינה:
The question was asked: What if no arrangements at all were made?
Come and hear: But if they made such a condition at the outset, it is permitted. But with no arrangements it is forbidden.
What about the end, But if they just calculate the profit it is forbidden. But with no arrangements it is permitted!
Rather no answer can be deduced from this passage.
What if the partners did not make any arrangements, neither before nor after? Can the Jew take the profits from Sunday and the non-Jew from Saturday?
In the end, the baraita cannot answer this question. The first half would lead to the ruling that without any explicit arrangements it is prohibited. And the second half would lead to the opposite.
May we return to you, chapter Before their festivals
Congratulations, you have finished the first chapter of Avodah Zarah. It s the longest chapter, so we re about of the way through the Tractate. Keep up the great work!